Could Diabetes Sneak Up On Me?

How can I have diabetes and not know it?

Sometimes, people who have what I'll call silent diabetes, they actually already have diabetes they just don't know it, will have symptoms and signs. They will notice that they urinate more, that they get up at night to urinate, that they drink more, that they may have started to lose weight even though they're eating normally. And they say oh gee, doctor, I've got some good news for you. I've lost ten pounds or twenty pounds. And I wasn't even trying.

That may not be a good sign. It may be that they were over weight and they've developed diabetes and that's why they're losing weight. And of course they should be aware that sometimes if they have what I'm calling silent, or undiagnosed diabetes, they may start even to show signs of some of the complications. Like neuropathies, or vascular insufficiencies, and sometimes that's the first presentation of a person with type-two diabetes.